"To be candid with you, I don't know that [President Obama] has the votes right now." She added, "I think there's a lot of concern in the Democratic caucus."
I'm putting her on the fence. While it's unclear where she stands on the public option, she absolutely needs to be reminded about how a super-majority of Americans support a public option. So Dianne Feinstein joins the ranks of the Coalition of the Corrupt & Spineless.
Call Senator Feinstein's office early and often and make sure she knows that upwards of 76 percent of Americans support the public option according to NBC and the Wall Street Journal:
Dianne Feinstein
Phone: (202) 224-3841
Fax: (202) 228-3954
Email
And we should probably remove Senator Schumer from the coalition. Yesterday:
A key Democrat, New York Sen. Charles Schumer, said this option now seems even more of a necessity in view of unsuccessful behind-the-scenes attempts to get a deal with Republicans on nonprofit co-ops as an alternative to a public plan. [...]
"I don't think I could say with a straight face that this (co-op proposal) is at all close to a nationwide public option," Schumer, D-N.Y., told The Associated Press on Sunday. "Right now, this co-op idea doesn't come close to satisfying anyone who wants a public plan."
Duh. The co-op plan sucks, and the Republicans don't want it. It's a waste of time. Just include a public option and stand boldly with 76 percent of the American people.